Secrets and Lies
by vespertine dreams
Summary: Tim is injured and, while at the hospital, Tony realises that Tim has been keeping secrets from his family. Tony / Tim - mild slash. Reviews welcome. Second part now added.
1. Secrets and Lies

**Notes**- All of my Tony/Tim fics can be read as stand-alones but if you want to start at the beginning, the reading order is-

Revelations and Reverberations

First Steps

ISpy

Smile, you're on Candid Camera!

Secrets and Lies

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Secrets and Lies

Tony's car skidded to a stop in the ambulance bay outside of the hospital and he jumped out, ignoring the calls from the security guard that he couldn't park there. He didn't care; if the guard was that concerned, let him get the car towed.

"Special Agent DiNozzo," he said to the receptionist. "Agent Timothy McGee was just brought in…"

"Tony!"

He turned to see Gibbs beckoning him from one of the side rooms in the waiting area and hurried over.

"Where is he? Oh God, what happened?" Tony asked. "I don't get it; he was only going out to pick up a witness."

Gibbs' hand clamped around Tony's arm and he steered him towards a seat, where he was instructed to sit down. Gibbs sat beside him.

"He'll be fine," he said. "The doc says that the bullet passed through his shoulder, missing all arteries and bones."

Tony tried to get to his feet again but Gibbs stopped him. "They won't let us see him yet," he said. "The doc said he'd come out and get us when they'd seen to him."

The next ten minutes had to be the longest of Tony's life, waiting, pacing, until Gibbs forced a cup of coffee into his hand and told him to sit down again. He didn't think he could drink it, though; he was too busy panicking. Sure, Gibbs had told him that Tim would be OK, but he would only fully believe that when he could see for himself. The phone call alone had been enough to give him a heart attack, when Gibbs had called him, back at the office, to tell him. He sighed, leaning heavily on his hands, elbows propped on his knees. Why did this have to happen when things were going so well? It didn't seem like six months since that first kiss, yet it was. Six months together with Tim; they'd even been talking about moving in together.

"Calm down, DiNozzo," Gibbs told him softly. "I know you're worried but you're not going to help him if you're having a panic attack."

Gibbs was right, but it was really hard to stop that reaction when your boyfriend had just been shot.

He took a couple of deep breaths and assured Gibbs that he'd be OK, glad that the older man was here. Gibbs had known about their relationship almost straight away, before the others found out, and he had made his support clear. So far they hadn't encountered any negative reactions from their colleagues, and weren't expecting any, but he knew that Gibbs would be on their side should it happen.

Eventually, he was allowed in to see Tim. Gibbs had gone with the doctor to fill out Tim's paperwork and call for Sarah, Tim's sister. He was legally listed as the emergency contact, in case anything happened whilst Tim was on duty, but he still wanted Tim's family to be notified.

Tony went into the room, hardly daring to look at the pale figure in the bed. Tim looked awful; his skin was pale, bright white bandages wrapping his wounds. He appeared to be asleep but as Tony sat himself down quietly in the chair beside the bed, Tim's eyes fluttered open.

"Hey, you're awake." Tony stood again and moved to the bed, taking Tim's hand in one of his. He leaned over to press a kiss to Tim's forehead. "How are you feeling?"

Tim's lips curved up in a faint smile. "Dumb question."

Tony sighed. "Yeah, OK, it was, probie."

"You promised not to call me that any more."

"So? You promised not to get yourself shot." Tim frowned, confused, and Tony sighed. "Well, you should have."

Tim's smile was brighter this time, his tone lightly teasing. "You were worried about me."

"Of course I damn well was!"

A nurse appeared in the doorway, looking uneasy. "Is everything alright in here?" Tony assured her it was and she nodded. "I must ask you to keep your voice down."

She remained by the door, concerned, but Tim ignored her. Looking up at his boyfriend he could see the emotion behind Tony's don't-care façade. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to make light of this."

The nurse cleared her throat pointedly, interrupting them.

"Agent McGee needs to rest now," she told them.

Tony shook his head. "I'm not leaving," he told her and, after a moment's glaring between the two, she gave in and left him sitting by the bed.

Tony was reading a magazine as Tim slept when he heard footsteps outside the door a few hours later. A young woman came bursting in.

"Oh my God!"

Tony put the magazine down. "Sarah? You're Tim's sister, right? We met a while ago- I'm Tony."

She turned to him, nodding, but she wasn't really focussed on him at present. He could understand completely, seeing a familiar myriad of emotions that he'd had when he first arrived at the hospital all those hours ago.

"He'll be fine," he assured her. "The doctor said that the bullet didn't do any serious damage. They got it out and now it's just a matter of giving the muscle around his shoulder time to heal."

Sarah sagged into the chair, visibly relieved. "I was out- I only checked my messages ten minutes ago." She glanced at Tony, as though noticing him for the first time. "Have you been here since they brought him in?"

"Yeah. I didn't want him to be on his own, you know?"

Sarah smiled. "Thank you; Tim is so lucky to have friends who care so much. Hey, I'm sure you have things you should be doing," she said. "I'll stay with him now that I'm here."

Tony left, not knowing what else to do. He was sitting in the waiting room when Abby arrived five minutes later. She had come as soon as her shift ended, carrying a bag full of snacks and a stuffed toy hippo that farted when she squeezed it. It would cheer him up, she told him, handing it over. It didn't. He still couldn't believe what had happened in Tim's room.

"She just dismissed me, Abbs."

Abby sat down next to him, her arms around him as she gave him a hug.

"Aww, poor Tony. Maybe she was just confused," she said. "After all, she'd had a shock."

Tony shook his head. "No, she had no idea who I was. I really thought I meant something to him, Abbs. I guess I was wrong."

Abby frowned, then smacked him on the arm. "OK, that's it. Stop being an idiot. You know how he feels about you." She hugged him again, in apology for the smack. "Talk to him before you go and do anything stupid."

"I can't, not when he's hurt."

"So, talk to Sarah instead," Abby suggested.

Tony shook his head. "I can't do that either. What if there's a reason he hasn't told her?"

Abby smiled and it clicked in his mind that had been the point she was trying to make. It didn't make it hurt any less that Tim had kept their relationship secret from his family, especially his sister, who he was especially close to, but he would leave that particular conversation until Tim was better, though.

--------

Tim was allowed to leave the hospital the following day, on the condition that he had someone at home to take care of him. He had his arm in a sling, tightly strapped to his torso so that he couldn't pull the injured muscles in his shoulder. It made things awkward for him and he needed someone else there to help.

Gibbs and Tony had been there to collect him, taking him back to his apartment. Since Sarah didn't have a car, she'd had to let them do it but she had no intention of leaving his care up to them as well.

"I'll be back this afternoon," she told him. "I just need to get my coursework and assignments for the next few days."

As soon as she was gone, Gibbs also made himself scarce, heading back into NCIS.

"Is there anything you need before I go?" Tony asked, getting Tim comfortable on the sofa and handing him the TV, DVD and stereo remote controls.

Tim shook his head. "I'm fine, stop worrying." He tried to catch Tony's hand as he walked past but Tony evaded him. "OK, what's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Tony, tell me, please," Tim said. "Have I done something to upset you?"

Tony sighed, remembering his resolve to leave this until Tim was well again fading. He had intended to leave it, but then Sarah had come in and once again made him feel as though he was in the way.

"At the hospital, when I was sitting with you, your sister arrived," he began. He smiled, but there was no humour to it. "She said how great it was that you had friends who cared so much. Your _friend_, Tim? What the hell?" he paused, not certain he wanted to know the answer to the next question but he was unable to stop the words coming out of his mouth. "Are you ashamed of me?"

Tim was on his feet before Tony had even finished speaking, pulling him into a one-handed embrace and wincing when he moved his shoulder.

"Tony, first of all, _never_ think that I'm ashamed about what we have," he said. "I'm sorry about Sarah; I didn't know what to say to her. I meant to tell her but then things kept coming up and the longer I left it…" He stopped and sighed, meeting Tony's eyes. "I was nervous about telling her, OK?"

Now, Tony felt like a total shit for bringing up the subject. Tim had only really acknowledged his bisexuality when they had begun dating, only revealing it to his friends at NCIS a couple of months ago. He was entitled to be nervous about shattering the version of him that his family knew and telling turning it all upside-down.

"I didn't mean to be such a drama-queen about it," Tony told him. "I wasn't going to say anything."

Tim smiled, leaning up to brush his lips over Tony's. "I'm glad you did. And you're right; it's past time for telling her about us."

--------

When Sarah returned an hour later, laden down with textbooks and folders, he called her to the kitchen. She came in, a curious expression on her face as she noticed Tony sitting at the table with her brother, and he asked her to sit down.

"Sarah, I need to tell you something," Tim began. "I appreciate your offer to stay with me until my shoulder is better, but there's no need."

"But the doctor said-"

"Tony is going to stay with me." He saw her cast a puzzled look to Tony before she looked to him again. "Tony and I are together. As a couple."

"What? I don't understand- what are you telling me, that you're gay?" she asked. "No. You would have told me; we tell each other everything."

Tim reached across the table and took her hand. "I'm bi, Sarah. I wasn't sure how you were going to react and so I kept putting off telling you. I haven't told mom or dad yet either."

For a long time, Sarah just stared at them, her eyes wide as she digested the information she had just learned.

"How long?" she asked eventually.

"Six months."

Sarah looked shocked. "So it's not just some crisis of sexuality then? Jeez, six months?"

"No, this isn't just some experiment," Tim informed her. He glanced at Tony and smiled affectionately. "I think, no, I _know_ that I love him."

--------

Tony curled around Tim's body as he pulled the bedcovers over them both later than night, as Tim tried to get comfortable without hurting his shoulder. Tim finally managed to get settled on his side, facing Tony, so that his shoulder wasn't touching the bed.

"Did you mean what you said before?" Tony asked, his fingers tracing lightly over Tim's chest, just wanting to touch.

Tim nodded. "That probably wasn't the best time to tell you but I meant it."

"Say it again, Timmy."

"I love you."

Tony smiled, leaning closer to steal a kiss. "Good, because I love you too."

Tony smiled happily in the darkness as Tim fell asleep. Tomorrow, they'd have to deal with the fallout- bullet wounds and jobs and Sarah and, most likely, Tim's parents once Sarah called them. Tim had looked concerned when she left; she had just walked out a few minutes after the conversation at the kitchen table. He suspected that she was more pissed about the fact that he had kept it a secret from her than she was about the relationship in general; he'd said as much to Tony.

Despite everything, it seemed to Tony that the world couldn't get better than it was right then.

End.


	2. The Parent Trap

Notes- Tim's parents are entirely figments of my imagination, with the exception of Sarah, of course.

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The Parent Trap

Tony DiNozzo half-listened to the one-sided conversation as he watched Bruce Willis shoot another bad guy on screen. He smiled, his attention taken back to Die Hard; he loved this movie. He was trying to teach Tim some decent movie-sense -Tim had actually been enjoying it too- but then the phone rang. So far, there had been an awful lot of listening and not much talking from Tim and he looked just a tiny bit worried.

"OK, mom. I'll be there," Tony heard him say eventually, then sigh. "Yes, mom, we'll both be there. Bye, mom."

Tony turned to him, eyebrow raised in question. "Well, I think I guessed that was your mom, but dare I ask where you just promised to go?"

"Not me, Tony," Tim told him with just the tiniest hint of glee. "Us. It seems that my sister has told them that I'm with someone and they want to meet you. Mom has invited us to go and stay for the weekend; she's having a party for my dad's birthday."

Tony frowned. "They're OK with it?" When they had told Sarah, she hadn't taken the news too well to begin with, taking a few days to adjust to the fact that her brother was in a relationship with a man. He saw the smile on Tim's face falter. "What aren't you telling me?"

"Well, it seems that Sarah neglected to mention one tiny detail," Tim confessed. "My mom is under the impression that Tony is Toni, as in Antonia."

"And, naturally, you didn't set her straight."

Tim blushed slightly. "I intended to but I thought it might be better to do it in person, not over the phone." He met Tony's accusing gaze and sighed. "Fine. I chickened out, OK?"

Tony couldn't help but laugh; this was going to be an interesting weekend. He pulled Tim back against him, where he had been sitting before moving to answer the phone, resting against Tony. Draping his arm back around Tim's shoulders, he leaned forward to press a kiss to the younger man's hair.

"Relax, Timmy; it'll be fine."

"Easy for you to say," Tim muttered, but he appreciated the support.

"Just enjoy the movie and forget about it." Tony pointed to the TV. "Hey, this is the best bit coming up- see? Wait for it…"

Tim watched the movie, knowing that Tony was just trying to distract him and was grateful for him doing so. He could really kick Sarah for dropping him in it like this; why the hell couldn't she have just told mom that Tony was a guy? He had the feeling that this was her revenge for him keeping it a secret from her for so long.

--------

Five days later, after convincing Gibbs to give them both the weekend off, Tony looked across at Tim, in the driver's seat. Tim was gripping the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles were turning white. He was staring straight ahead, his eyes wide. Tony knew how nervous his boyfriend was, but if he continued like this, he was going to have a panic attack before they actually reached his parents' house.

"Timmy, pull the car over."

Tim did, turning off in to a side street and stopping.

"Now let go of the death-grip on the wheel. That's good." Tony unclipped his seatbelt and turned in his seat. "Now come here."

Leaning over he unfastened Tim's seatbelt and reached up to manoeuvre Tim in his seat. Tim let himself be drawn into the kiss, Tony's hand creeping around to the back of his neck, holding him closer.

"Are you calmer now?" Tony asked, smiling, a few moments later as he drew back. "Right, let's go and get this over with, shall we?"

Tim nodded and started the car again, pulling back out onto the main road and the last five minutes of their journey. Pulling up in his parents' driveway, he was alarmed to see that there were two other cars there, apart from his parents'. He had kind of hoped to get the introductions and explanations over while it was just them, before anyone else arrived.

He parked up and got out, leaving their bags for the moment, just in case this didn't go too well. Not that he was telling Tony that, however. He felt the light touch of Tony's hand at the base of his back and it steeled his resolve. He was an NCIS agent for goodness' sake; he faced down criminals and terrorists on a daily basis. He could handle his mom.

He knocked on the door once before letting himself in, getting no further than a couple of steps into the kitchen.

"Timothy! You made it." His mom ushered him in, looking around the door for his guest. She stopped, frowned, then turned to Tim. "I thought you were bringing Antonia?"

Tim took a deep breath, reached back to Tony, bringing him inside. "Not exactly. Mom, this is Tony DiNozzo. My boyfriend."

Tim's mom got the same rabbit-in-the-headlights expression that Tony had seen on Tim so many times before, her mouth dropping open. If not for the situation, Tony thought, it would have been quite amusing.

"Timothy, glad you could make it." An older man came into the kitchen, glanced between them and asked, "Is there something wrong?"

Tim's mom seemed to snap out of it and turned to her husband.

"Timothy brought a guest," she said. "This is Tony, Timothy's… partner."

Just then, Sarah came in to join them, a mischievous smile on her face. Tim's assessment had been spot on; she had just wanted to make him squirm. He narrowed his eyes at her and cast her a look that promised brotherly retribution. She looked to Tony and then to her parents and she scarpered back to the other room.

"This was a mistake," Tim said eventually, after a few more moments of silence. "I think we're going to go."

They were almost out of the door when Tim's dad called then back.

"Don't leave just yet, son. Look, it was a bit of a shock and it took a little while for your mother and I to take it in," he said. He turned to Tony. "I'm sorry about your welcome here. Maybe we could start again?"

Tony nodded, smiling; they were really trying. Holding out his hand, he said,

"Hi there, I'm Tony DiNozzo."

"Thomas McGee." The older man shook his hand. "And this is my wife, Angela."

Thomas led them into the lounge, where Sarah sat with another couple and an older woman. As they came in, everyone looked up.

"Timothy, come over here and give me a kiss," the old woman said, beaming.

Tim smiled fondly and did as she asked, crouching in front of her chair and giving her a peck on the cheek.

"Hey, Grandma." He saw her curious looks back towards Tony and figured it was better to get this over with, like ripping off a band-aid. Standing, he went back to Tony's side. "Tony, this is my Aunt Margie and Uncle Charles and Grandma Ella. Everyone, this is Tony DiNozzo."

"Tony is Timothy's partner," his mom supplied helpfully, earning a grateful look from her son.

Tim's grandma looked over them both, then nodded. "Well, come over here, young man."

Tim smiled apologetically and nudged Tony forward. He went to her and crouched before her.

"So, you are our Timothy's boyfriend? Is that the right word?" Seeing the alarmed look he shot back to Tim, she laughed. "Don't look so shocked, young man; I watch Oprah."

Tony smiled. "Yes, ma'am, I am."

"Now don't you start calling me ma'am," she told him. "You make me sound old. Call me Ella."

"Yes, ma'am- sorry, _Ella_."

"DeNotzo, did you say?" she asked. "Where are you from?"

"DiNozzo," Tony corrected. "It's Italian, but I was born in America."

Ella smiled happily. "Italian, how wonderful! So, what do you do?"

"Mom, Tony is a guest. He might not want to answer lots of questions," Tim's mother began, coming over to them, but Ella waved her away.

"It's fine, Mrs McGee, honestly." Tony turned back to Ella. "I'm a Special Agent with NCIS. I work with Tim."

"Do you ever get to boss him around?" she asked, with a gleam in her eye.

Tony nodded; despite his apprehension, he liked Ella.

"All the time," he replied, grinning.

Ella and Tony both glanced back at Tim when they heard the resigned sigh from him and then smiled at each other.

"I think we'll get along just fine," she told Tony. "Now, come and sit down by me so I can tell you all about Timothy. Angela has some photographs around here somewhere…"

Later that evening, the rest of Tim's family arrived. The house was full, with the men out in the garden tending to the barbeque and drinking beer whilst most of the women had gathered in the kitchen with a few bottles of wine and enough gossip to last them for hours. Nieces and nephews ran around, playing ball games or just annoying their parents.

"I'm sorry about Grandma," Tim said, once he managed to get Tony alone for a while. "I should have warned you that she can be a bit outspoken."

"I liked her," Tony assured him. "Especially when she got out those baby photos…"

He laughed at the groan from Tim, who assumed, quite correctly that he wasn't going to hear the end of those pictures for some time yet.

Tony glanced back around the corner of the staircase to see whether anyone was around. He didn't want to make things uncomfortable for Tim; even though his family seemed to have accepted his rather unexpected choice of partner, he didn't think they were ready for seeing anything else. Since no one was around, however… Manoeuvring himself closer to Tim, he leaned in to slant his mouth over Tim's. For a moment, Tim backed away from the kiss, glancing about nervously.

"Relax, there's no one around," Tony told him.

This time, Tim kissed him back, allowing Tony to pull him closer, hands around his waist. There was the sound of footsteps in the hallway and then,

"Honey, have you seen Timothy?"

Without missing a beat, Sarah's voice replied, "Yeah; on the stairs, making out with Tony."

Tim backed off and sighed, resting his forehead against the wall. "Sometimes, I really hate my sister."

Tony was sitting on the stair next to Tim when Angela tentatively poked her head around the corner. He felt like a teenager getting caught sneaking about with his boyfriend; the whole thing was actually funny.

"Sorry, I, um, didn't mean to interrupt," she began.

Tim's cheeks pinked. "Nothing going on, mom."

"Well, I just came to tell you that the food is ready," she said.

The two men got to their feet to follow her, passing Sarah on the way.

"Some day, when you're least expecting it," Tim promised her, "I'm going to remember this weekend." He smiled pleasantly. "Watch your back, sis."

Tony chuckled and waited until they were out of earshot before he leaned over to whisper,

"You know, you being all threatening-big-brother is very sexy."

By the time the evening was over, Tony was glad. Not that he hadn't enjoyed himself- he had –but there was only so much playing nice he could do. Right now, he just wanted some peace and quiet. Tim's mom had put them in the guest room and now he curled up in bed and dragged Tim's body against him, getting comfortable. When Tim tried to shift away from him, he stubbornly refused to move his arm, holding him in place.

"Tony, cut it out!"

Tony rolled his eyes in the darkness. "Relax, would you? We're going to sleep, nothing more."

Tim sighed loudly but some of the tension left his body. "I know. Tony?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you for coming with me this weekend. I mean, you didn't have to; they're my relatives," Tim said.

Tony kissed the back of his neck lightly. "I didn't mind, really." He yawned, getting settled down to go to sleep. Tim could almost hear the smile in Tony's voice when he added, "Besides, I'm expecting a nice reward when we get home for behaving myself all weekend."

"Deal."

---------

End.


End file.
